tUnE-yArDs, Live In Concert: Newport Folk 2012

Merrill Garbus, the mastermind behind tUnE-yArDs, often uses a minimal assortment of resources — a ukulele, some pedals, a bit of percussion here and there — to craft an explosive, unpredictable, worldly, beautiful and utterly inventive sound. On last year's widely beloved w h o k i l l, Garbus' music forms a cut-up collage of coos, howls and bold statements of purpose, but her live shows fan out into epic rave-ups, complete with a pair of saxophonists.

For all its ventures into politics and wild experimentation, tUnE-yArDs' music is fun above all else — a joyous and strange concoction that's at once wild, rhythmic, layered and swirling with surprises. Watching it unfold on stage is never less than a thrill. tUnE-yArDs performs here as part of the 2012 Newport Folk Festival, recorded live on Sunday, July 29 in Newport, R.I.